What a week!

This week I went to 3 hot yoga classes and enjoyed every minute of them. I can't help but feel so relaxed - mind, body and soul when I enter the studio and all stress and anxiety slip away as I focus on breathing and allow the energy to flow through my body.
I am excited to continue next week as I become more familiar with the poses and breathing exercises.

Thursday after yoga, I made myself a Breaded Eggplant Sandwich
Over the last 6 months or so my love for eggplant has grown enormously as I learn different ways to prepare it. This week I sliced it up and breaded it (as you would onion rings) and heated them up in some coconut oil. They were the perfect addition to my toasted tomato sandwich (with spinach, sprouts cucumber and vegenaise) on a whole wheat ciabatta roll.

To accompany this sandwich was a sweet potato (sliced and boiled) with a sprinkle (ok fine A LOT) of cinnamon.

For a snack I grabbed a can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed them, then sprinkled them with: cayenne pepper, cumin, curry powder, turmeric and sea salt. Then I laid them out on a cookie sheet (on parchment paper) and popped them into an oven at 350º for about 40 minutes, but turned them every 10-15 mins.
The result? very crunchy and spicy - they only lasted a day and a half so I will be making them again soon!

Yesterday I had the pleasure of eating at Magic Oven for lunch (my second time) and it was just delicious. I am mad at myself for not taking a photo but I was so excited to eat it that I totally forgot :( I guess I'll just have to go back soon!

Here is what I had:

Both were amazing and I was stuffed with the Small pasta dish.

Dinner with some girlfriends at BerBer last night. The place was Moroccan with beautiful decor and fabulous entertainment (on friday and Saturday nights).

The waiter looked at me like I had 2 heads when I said I was vegan and asked if they could they make a rish/veg dish for me. After asking if I could have meat (errr that would be a NO), he suggested a veggie pasta with a creamy pesto sauce (I said no cream/dairy) so the chef did a rare mixed veg with rice that was very tasty and filling. Look at those colours! Now if only they'd add it to their menu. My omnivore friend beside me was scoping out my dish - Ahah!

This morning I made some...dare I call them super-truffles? They are raw, vegan, gluten-free and contained many oh-so-amazing superfoods - Cacao, chia and blueberries.

I mixed 30 dates (approx 5 medjool dates) in a food processor with 1/4 cup water and 1/4 cup blueberries until paste formed. Added 2 tbsp coconut flour (or almond flour), 1 tbsp cacao powder, 2 tbsp ground chia seeds and mixed with a spatula.

Rolled these into balls (made 12) and chilled for an hour in the fridge. Then I fancied them all up in coconut flakes, chopped peanuts and cocoa powder.

These turned out pretty soft so they are in the freezer now but I ate 3 (1 of each) and I really liked the one with chopped peanuts, made next time I'll add some nut butter in to the truffle...

Have a sweet day (weekend)!